No 14.  Weekly. 12 July 2002

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Loyola de Palacio opens Conference on public service in the Energy sector

Loyola de Palacio opened a Conference on "public service in an opened-up energy market" held in Brussels on 9 July by the Directorate-General for Energy and Transport. The Vice-President of the Commission underlined that public service is an essential factor to the process of opening to competition sectors relying on networks. Public service provisions are an integral part of the Energy Market Directives. The Commission supports recommendations from the European Parliament and the Heads of State and Government, made in Barcelona, to reinforce further consumer protection, in particular for the most vulnerable consumers.

Expiry of ECSC treaty: Symposium entitled "The history and future of the European Union" on Tuesday, 23 July, at the ESC

The Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was signed in Paris on 18 April 1951 by Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. It was concluded for a period of fifty years and is due to expire on 23 July 2002. With the expiry of the ECSC treaty, the ECSC Consultative Committee, the only institution which still exists in its original format, will wind up its activities. Its role will be taken over by the European Economic and Social Committee (ESC).To mark this event 35 years, too, after the merging of the Institutions of the European Communities in 1967 the European Economic and Social Committee is holding a symposium entitled "The history and future of the European Union" on Tuesday, 23 July from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

EP: Single European Sky ready for take-off?

The Transport Committee adopted on 10 July two co-decision reports on the creation and implementation of a Single European Sky. The reports, by Giovanni FAVA (PES, I) and Marieke SANDERS-TEN HOLTE (ELDR, NL), are on Commission proposals designed to establish a Single European Sky as of 2004 by ensuring a better use of existing air space and increasing safety conditions. Key issues are the role of Eurocontrol and civil/military co-operation. MEPs tabled more than 200 amendments to the proposals, most of them technical. Mr Fava was reporting on the regulation laying down the framework for the creation of a Single European Sky and Mrs Sanders on three technical regulations regarding the provision of air navigation services, the organisation and use of airspace and the operability of the European Air Traffic Management network.

EP: Stricter safety rules for aircraft from non-EU countries

The Transport Committee had bad news on 10 July for non-EU air carriers which wish to use Community airports but do not meet EU safety standards when it gave its backing to Commission proposals to tighten up aircraft safety rules. The committee's report, by Nelly MAES (Greens/EFA, B), comes under the codecision procedure, first reading.

MEPs demand detailed rules on flight duty and rest times

The Transport Committee took on 10 July the Commission to task for failing, in its latest proposal for stricter safety measures in civil aviation, to specify in sufficient detail the minimum standards on flight duty and rest times for pilots and other cabin crew. Rapporteur Brian Simpson said that this new regulation offered a great opportunity to lay down minimum standards in the area of civil aviation that all airlines in every Member State have to abide by. Whilst Member States can still adopt even more stringent regulations if they so wish, the Simpson report is the first time that a pan-European legislation covering technical requirements and flight and duty time has been successfully proposed. 

Safer radioactive waste management

The Industry Committee has unanimously endorsed on 10 July the report by Esko SEPPANEN (EUL/NGL, FIN) on the Commission's proposal that the European Community and Euratom should sign up to the International Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management.

Road accidents database now on Internet

Statistics from the Community database CARE are now available on the Commission's Europa web-site. CARE is a Community database on road accidents resulting in death or injury. CARE comprises detailed data on individual accidents as collected by the Member States. In the next months new graphs and tables will become available. 

European Commission
Energy and Transport Directorate-General
Information & Communications Unit
B-1049 Brussels
Fax : (32-2) 295.61.18

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The contents of this digest are prepared by officials of the Energy and Transport DG and represent their personal views on the subject matters. These views have not been adopted or in any way approved by the European Commission and should not be relied upon as a statement of the Commission or the Energy and Transport DG.

(c) European Communities, 2002

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